Douglas County Sheriff Briefs

Staff Report

Posted
8/2/13

Hawk slows traffic on C-470

A hawk that appeared to be injured spent some resting time at the end of the eastbound C-470 on-ramp off Broadway on July 31. The bird prompted two calls into Colorado State Patrol and multiple calls to Douglas County Animal Control.

“Before we could respond to the first call, the bird reportedly flew away,” said CSP Sgt. Mike Baker. “Apparently, it returned, spurring a second call. At that point a trooper responded to the scene and was unable to locate the bird. I assume it flew off again. ... For both calls related to this incident, vehicles reportedly were stopped in the traffic lane. This is incredibly unsafe. While we sympathize with those who care greatly for animals, people should not jeopardize their safety for injured wildlife — especially when such animals can be dangerous in their own right.”

Douglas County Animal Control officers also responded to the scene, but the bird had flown off before they arrived as well.

Locker room thefts a trend

Numerous fitness clubs in Douglas County have been experiencing multiple locker room thefts recently, from both unlocked and locked lockers. Common items that are being taken include credit cards/debit cards, clothing and cash. One incident in Castle Rock involved a man’s loaded gun being stolen from an unlocked locker.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is asking that people limit the amount of valuables they take into the gym and to report any suspicious activity to the sheriff’s office tip line at 303-660-7579. People are asked not to try to apprehend the suspects on their own.

Fire restrictions lifted

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office rescinded fire restrictions for all areas of unincorporated of Douglas County July 26. While recent rainfall and cooler temperatures have reduced the danger of wildfire, the office encourages people to remain vigilant and cautious, as fire danger still remains present.

Warm and windy days can quickly lower the fuel moisture content of trees and grass making them susceptible to ignition. The county will continue to monitor fire danger and make appropriate adjustments to reduce the risk of human-caused fires.

CSU job site hacked

A Highlands Ranch resident who lives on Woodrose Lane was one of nine people to file a complaint in relation to the Colorado State University job listings page. After applying for a job on the site, the resident received a request to send $1,800 to a supplier and was mailed a check of $1,950 to deposit first.

After depositing the money and wiring the $1,800 via Western Union, the resident was informed by her bank that the check supposedly from CSU was bad and that it had bounced, forcing her account into the negative. CSU has since removed the job listing in question from its site.

Statue stolen, replaced by cone

A statue of a lion, valued at $500, was stolen from the front porch of a home in the 10100 block of Charissglenn Lane in Highlands Ranch around 11:50 p.m. July 22.

A neighbor reported seeing four juveniles get out of a white Honda CRV, pull their shirts over their heads so they could not be recognized and take the statue. The teens then replaced the 150-pound statue with an orange traffic cone.

The suspects have not been identified at this time.

Roxborough Elementary vandalized

More than $2,000 in damage to Roxborough Elementary School was caused when a large softball-sized rock was thrown through a double window pane between the evening of July 23 and early morning hours of July 24. The school is currently reviewing video surveillance from that night however; Douglas County deputies noticed that a video surveillance camera in that area was also broken.

Apartments vehicles broken into

Three vehicles at the Bluffs Apartments on 600 W. County Line Road in Highlands Ranch were broken into overnight on July 23. All three vehicles had windows broken out, and a variety of items, including paperwork and a laptop computer bag were stolen from the vehicles. High-value items such as stereos and CDs were left behind.

Senior’s bike stolen

A resident of Wind Crest Retirement Community in Highlands Ranch was riding her bike on the Highline Canal Trail just north of the community on July 20. She was going up a hill when her rear tire blew out. Unable to carry the bike out to the trailhead, she left the bike in the bushes off to the side of the path.

She was unable to get anybody to drive her to the trailhead and to the bike’s location until two days later, and when she got there her S12C Crossroads pink bicycle with 28-inch wheels was no longer there. She had purchased the bike for $600. Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the bicycle is asked to drop it off at the sheriff’s substation in Highlands Ranch or at Wind Crest.

Cattle get loose after trespass

About 100 cattle at a ranch off South Perry Park Road in Sedalia got loose after a gate had been unlawfully unlocked and left open near the intersection of Remuda Ranch Parkway and Dakan Road.

A worker at the ranch reported that the gate continuously has been being unlocked after hours and left open and that after finding an empty case of beer, the hand believes teenagers are trespassing and drinking on the property without permission.

Woman’s rings missing

Douglas County deputies responded to Valley View Christian Church in the 400 block of Winterthur Way just southwest of Highlands Ranch on July 15 on a theft report. A woman who had been setting up for Vacation Bible School at the church on June 24 had taken off both her engagement ring and eternity ring and couldn’t remember where she set them down.

She noticed four days later that the rings were missing and checked with the church’s lost and found and a few members and nothing had come up. After a fair amount of time passed, she decided to file a report. The rings are valued at $1,500 and $289 respectively.

Larkspur home ransacked

A white Oldsmobile Aurora and a gray sedan were seen parked in the driveway of a home in the 4800 block of Cheyenne Drive in Larkspur between 11 and 11:30 a.m. July 18, the same day it was reported that the front door of the home had been forced open with the deadbolt still in the latch.

Two upstairs bedrooms of the home were completely ransacked with dresser drawers pulled out and dumped on the floor and beds. Missing items from the home included two Apple computers and a Kindle Fire with a combined value of $4,400.

Horse get unwanted haircut

Sometime between 8 and 9 p.m. July 15 in the 12800 block of North Second Street in Parker, someone allegedly cut between eight and 10 inches of hair off the end of the tail of a palomino horse in a corral.

The owner of the horse, who lives at the same address as the corral, said that this same type of thing happened about three years ago in Parker to numerous horse owners. She believes people steal the hair to make things with. There are no suspects in this matter at this time.

Homes for sale vandalized

On July 17 there were two different reports of homes for sale being vandalized; one in Parker and one in Highlands Ranch. The home in Parker, in the 9000 block of Apache Plume Drive, had a rock thrown through a bedroom window. The one in Highlands Ranch, in the 10300 block of Fairlawn Trail, had the peep hole of the front door removed. Neither homeowner was home at the time of the vandalism.

More vehicles vandalized in Ranch

Two vehicles on Mallard Drive in Highlands Ranch were reportedly vandalized sometime overnight, late July 18 or early July 19. A vehicle parked outside a residence in the 3800 block of Mallard had a missing wallet that included all of the owner’s credit cards, while a vehicle in the 3900 block of Mallard, a vehicle that had been forced into was missing a pair of binoculars and a gym bag.

Two other reports were filed on July 21 for vehicle tampering in Highlands Ranch, with two tires being reportedly “slashed” outside a residence in the 8400 block of Pebble Creek Way and a GPS unit stolen from a Jeep outside of a residence in the 9600 block of Newcastle Drive.